From Bloomberg:
Home-Price Gains in U.S. Cities Cooled in February
Home prices in 20 U.S. cities rose at a slower pace in the year ended February as the residential real-estate market cooled.
The S&P/Case-Shiller index of property values increased 12.9 percent from February 2013, the smallest 12-month gain since August, after rising 13.2 percent in the year ended in January, a report from the group showed today in New York. The median projection of 33 economists surveyed by Bloomberg called for a 13 percent advance.
Growth in property values eased as rising mortgage rates and severe winter weather restrained demand for dwellings in the first few months of the year. Cooling price appreciation combined with an improving job market will probably help home sales regain momentum later in the year.
“The days of very robust home-price gains are over,” said Thomas Costerg, a New York-based economist at Standard Chartered Plc, who projected the index would rise 12.8 percent. “Elevated price gains are a headwind, especially for first-time buyers. Prices will slow going forward, and the housing market needs that to recalibrate supply and demand.”
Economists’ estimates in the Bloomberg survey ranged from gains of 11.6 percent to 14 percent. The S&P/Case-Shiller index is based on a three-month average, which means the February figure was also influenced by transactions in January and December.
Home prices adjusted for seasonal variations increased 0.8 percent in February from the prior month, matching the Bloomberg survey median. Unadjusted prices were unchanged.
The year-over-year gauge, based on records dating back to 2001, provides better indications of trends in prices, the group has said. The panel includes Karl Case and Robert Shiller, the economists who created the index.
All of the 20 cities in the index showed a year-over-year gain, led by a 23.1 percent jump in Las Vegas and a 22.7 percent advance in San Francisco. Cleveland showed the smallest year-over-year increase, with prices rising 3 percent.
Good Morning New Jersey
S&P Case Shiller – February 2014 – NY Commuter Area
Low Tier (Under $280486) – Up 5.8% YOY
Mid Tier ($280486 – $446884) – Up 6.1% YOY
High Tier (Over $446884) – Up 6.0% YOY
Overall – Up 6.1% YOY
And for prices falling between January and February? Month to month prices almost always fall between January and February (Not seasonally adjusted), only time this wasn’t true was during the bubble run-up. February/March generally forms the annual price trough.
From HousingWire:
Homeownership hits lowest level since June 1995
The homeownership rate in the first quarter of 2014 is at the lowest since June 1995.
The rate of homeownership at the end of 1Q2014 was 64.8%, which is 0.2 percentage points lower than the first quarter 2013 rate of 65%, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
The rental vacancy rates inside principle cities, in the suburbs and outside MSA’s were not statistically different from the first quarter 2013 rates.
Anthony Sanders, distinguished professor of real estate finance at George Mason University, says on his blog Confounded Interest, that he knows exactly why.
“Here is the reason why: declining real median household income, declining wage earnings growth, declining mortgage purchase applications,” he says.
1 in 4 homeowners regrets buying a house
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/homeowners-regrets-buying-a-house-redfin-163113390.html
hen Jennifer Berry, 41, purchased a home in Grand Rapids, Mich. with her husband in 2001, they had a simple plan: live there for 10 years or so, cash in on the equity and upgrade. Thanks to the financial crisis, things didn’t quite go as planned. Her husband’s business failed, they separated and she was forced to sell the home at a loss.
“Instead of gaining equity, [our home] actually lost equity and I ended up literally paying someone to buy it just so I could get out from under it and save my credit score,” says Berry, who now rents her home. “I’m looking at retirement in 20 years and thinking about having to take out a 30-year mortgage now and worry about [the upkeep] drives me crazy.”
Berry isn’t the only one suffering from homebuyer’s remorse. One out of four homeowners admit they wouldn’t buy their home again if they had the chance, according to a recent survey by real estate brokerage Redfin.
The biggest factor contributing to homebuyers’ remorse appeared to be affordability. Nearly one-third of homeowners who reported a household income of less than $100,000 said they were unhappy with their decision. In contrast, just 14% of homeowners who earned more than $100,000 said they were unhappy, according to the survey.
Younger homeowners were also more likely to have regrets. About 28% of homeowners under 65 said they regretted buying their home, compared to 14% of senior homeowners. And one in five homeowners with kids still living at home said they regretted their home purchase as well.
Redfin’s findings come around the same time as new home sales have begun to lag in the U.S. Sales of single-family homes fell by 14.5% to an eight-month low in March, with just 384,000 units sold. Experts have blamed slow sales on bad weather, low home inventory, rising mortgage rates, and a rise in vacant homes (homes that are under repair or being rented). Whatever the case, one thing is certain — buyers today are at a distinct disadvantage when it comes to finding a home that meets every point on their checklist.
[Click here to check home loan rates in your area.]
“One of the biggest regrets homeowners have is feeling pressured [to buy],” says Marshall Park, a Redfin agent based in Washington, D.C. “There aren’t enough homes on sale now, they’re sort of under the gun to buy their home.
Half of homeowners admitted to having regrets about their home purchase in a similar study by Trulia released last August. The majority of people with buyer’s remorse said they regretted choosing a home that wasn’t large enough for them. One in five homeowners said they wish they’d inspected the home more carefully before moving in — a trend that doesn’t surprise Park.
In order to compete with other bidders, he’s seen many homeowners signing contracts and moving in without getting a professional home inspection.
“In competitive markets like D.C., it’s not rare to just forego a home inspection or say you won’t ask for any repairs,” he says. “People are doing that and purchasing properties they could possibly have to dump tens of thousands of dollars into later.”
This is the kind of mistake that Trulia real estate expert Michael Corbett says is a “disaster waiting to happen.”
“I would never waive an inspection,” he says. “I would pass on the house before I’d waive on an inspection, mainly because I may get to a house and realize [too late] that there are issues.”
In other cases, owners said they loved their home but were unhappy with their chosen neighborhood. Neighborhood-related complaints made up four of the top 20 homeowner regrets in Trulia’s report. Fourteen percent of homeowners said they wish they’d vetted their neighborhood more, and 15% wished they had picked one closer to work.
“Very often our clients fail to do basic research and end up living in the right house but the wrong town,” says Ali Bernstein of Suburban Jungle Realty Group, which specializes in helping New York City renters transition into suburbia. “Agents are there to sell you the house, but the way the real estate market is set up, they don’t tell you about the towns. You’ve got to find a town that fits your personality.”
So how can you make sure you get through the whole home buying process without disappointment? Here are a few tips.
Don’t bite off more than you can chew. Your housing costs should typically take up less than one-third of your total household budget (or 40% for those who live in high-cost areas like New York or San Francisco) — property taxes and homeowner’s insurance included. Free mortgage calculators are plentiful online and can give you a pretty good estimate of what you can afford in your area.
Think beyond the inspection. In addition to a home inspection, don’t kid yourself into thinking maintenance costs end there. “People forget about the ongoing homeownership costs,” says Corbett. “Not just the closing costs, but the ongoing homeownership costs and keeping a slush fund for ‘invisible systems’ like electric and plumbing that will eventually break down.” Keep an emergency savings account flush with at least $1,000 to handle any unexpected maintenance issues.
Hire a good real estate agent. In Redfin’s survey, more than 30% of homeowners said they felt like their real estate agent wasn’t very helpful, and another 8% said their agent was the worst part of the homebuying process. Always vet your real estate agent. Ask trusted friends and family for recommendations and come up with a list of your top picks. It’s wise to arrange to meet in person at their office. Not only will you get a sense of their personality, but you can take a look around their workspace to see how seriously they take their job.
Get to know your neighborhood. With such low inventory out there, buying a home can feel like a dog-eat-dog competition. Take the time to vet your choice of neighborhood before rushing a bid on a home there. That means driving by at several times throughout the day — morning, noon and night — to get a feel for the environment. You might discover a nearby highway makes too much noise at night, or morning school bus traffic that could make your commute a disaster.
he’s becoming more and more like chifi. the worst thing was dodging taxes being the 1st thing out of law school
joyce says:
April 29, 2014 at 5:09 pm
Comrade,
That is one of the most truly idiotic comments you’ve ever made.
83.Comrade Nom Deplume, Guardian of the Realm says:
April 29, 2014 at 3:56 pm
[81] ottoman,
If I have to choose between rich people and government, I will side with the rich. They give me money. Government doesn’t.
@BreakingNews: Actor Bob Hoskins has died at the age of 71 following pneumonia, his agent says – @SkyNewsBreak, @Reuters http://t.co/HWJjVhI1O3
they had a simple plan: live there for 10 years or so, cash in on the equity and upgrade. Thanks to the financial crisis, things didn’t quite go as planned. Her husband’s business failed, they separated and she was forced to sell the home at a loss.
Right, because going into this, they had appropriately set expectations…
rofl? Skimping out on the home inspection? I guess the new iphone is more important than the possibility of mold in your basement or a foundation that may collapse.
I would regret buying a house in Grand Rapids too!
By the way, walking into the 7-11 with the expectation you are going to win a million dollars on a scratch off is not a “plan”.
Secondly, a 2001 purchase and by 2010 they had no equity? Huh? How does that work? Even in Grand Rapids it would have meant that they extracted equity mid-stream, probably to fund that failed business.
They always leave that bit out.
Last point I’ll make is that this is highly dependent on timing … given the vast numbers of buyers during the bubble, who were subsequently burnt, I’m surprised the number is as low as it is.
If you had run this survey in 2004, I doubt anyone would have “regretted” buying a home, even if they did.
Demographics might not be the single cause, but it is def a major reason why. I honestly think it is one of the definitive causes to this current slow growth economy, but I stress, it’s not the sole cause. Obviously, many factors come into play.
“The term bears negative connotations, but slow economic growth is not always the fault of economic policymakers. For example, potential growth may be slowed down by catastrophic or demographic reasons.”
“Economist Robert J. Gordon wrote in August 2012: “Even if innovation were to continue into the future at the rate of the two decades before 2007, the U.S. faces six headwinds that are in the process of dragging long-term growth to half or less of the 1.9 percent annual rate experienced between 1860 and 2007. These include demography, education, inequality, globalization, energy/environment, and the overhang of consumer and government debt. A provocative “exercise in subtraction” suggests that future growth in consumption per capita for the bottom 99 percent of the income distribution could fall below 0.5 percent per year for an extended period of decades.”[10]”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economic_stagnation
Ascent of the Robots says:
April 29, 2014 at 11:52 pm
Michael (63)-
Go open a history book. Demographics are not a cause of economic malaise; they are a symptom and an end result. We’re not into the girly-man endgame portion of this whole mess yet, but we have a rapidly-aging population bulge married to fewer and fewer younger people who can either economically or logistically support them.
Game over.
“I don’t think Japan’s problem is the same as ours. I agree that part of the reason we went into a recession has to do with the same reason Japan has been in trouble. That problem is demographics.”
Borrowing money to finance asset investments involves risk.
I’m thinking of moving away from all equities in my retirement accounts.
Too bad central banks around the world conspired to drive virtually all fixed income into zero real return territory.
Chifi – am I forgetting an attractive asset class?
Well said
grim says:
April 30, 2014 at 9:04 am
By the way, walking into the 7-11 with the expectation you are going to win a million dollars on a scratch off is not a “plan”.
Secondly, a 2001 purchase and by 2010 they had no equity? Huh? How does that work? Even in Grand Rapids it would have meant that they extracted equity mid-stream, probably to fund that failed business.
They always leave that bit out.
Rags….if you have a mortgage, you could conceivably be negative fixed income…..
BTW….what is your opinion on convexity? I was adding some bonds to a ladder after some significant layoff……where would you go?
Held in IRA…..
I was looking at the six’s to eight’s at the lower part of investment grade, but here is the catch…..the premium bonds are are safer due to convexity, but the discount bonds will show a gain through the passage of time due to accretion to par…….it is really a Catch-22 between optics versus volatility….you end up at the same place assuming similar YTM
Chifi – am I forgetting an attractive asset class?
Can I interest you in Bourbon futures?
Chif – every,morning I run my muni bond queries a few times always looking for bargains.
Today yields and selection are as bad as Spring 2013. Amazing people are buying 30 year munis at under 4%. Yet a few months ago would not buy same munis at 5%
I know a few men who got very rich wtih an unattractive asset class. Just marry the ugly only child of a rich guy.
14.Ragnar says:
April 30, 2014 at 9:20 am
Borrowing money to finance asset investments involves risk.
I’m thinking of moving away from all equities in my retirement accounts.
Too bad central banks around the world conspired to drive virtually all fixed income into zero real return territory.
Chifi – am I forgetting an attractive asset class?
I agree, timing affects opinion and philosophy when it comes to real estate. Buy in a bubble, and you will hate real estate for the rest of your life.
grim says:
April 30, 2014 at 9:07 am
Last point I’ll make is that this is highly dependent on timing … given the vast numbers of buyers during the bubble, who were subsequently burnt, I’m surprised the number is as low as it is.
If you had run this survey in 2004, I doubt anyone would have “regretted” buying a home, even if they did.
382410AF5 GOODRICH PETE CORP SR NT 8.87500% 03/15/2019
Bid Ask
Price 105.291 Price 105.990
Yield / Type 6.803 / W Yield / Type 6.537 / W
Rags/Chifi – Got Balls?
Chifi.Rags
I also like BPOP TRUPS.
still in TBTF club and TRUPS get paid back before treasury.
Symbol BPOPP
Description POPULAR INC PFD SER B 8.25% PERPETUAL
Put this trup in your back pocket. Trading at 24.5. If and when we get a sell off if you can grab this at 23 or less buy it. The Trup is callable at 25 and has a 8.25% coupon.
JJ,
Buying a B- credit to get a double digit yield takes balls.
Buying a B- credit to get less than 7% yield to maturity is just stepping on your own balls.
If everything goes right, I might get a 2% to 3% after-tax, inflation-adjusted annualized return.
If things go as they often do for B- credits, I get a big loss.
I’d rather take the sure negative real return of 1.5% to cash, which at least gives me the option to buy something better later.
Grim looking for investors? Customer sure but investor I don’t know too much volatility
Just throwing out how bad it is to get yield now. I follow a perverse form of backwardation. Meaning I take the approximate payout I would get in liquidation if it goes BK, add in all interest received to date plus my purchase price to figure out possible loss. For example I own this junk bond, AFFINION GROUP INC SR SB NT 11.50000% 10/15/2015 which is super risky. But I bought it at Par January 2010 and and after four years of interest already got back 46% of investment just in interest. So I will ride it to maturity. However, buying that bond today at par is very risk. Only two interest payments left and if it goes BK by 10-15-2015 that is a nightmare.
24.Ragnar says:
April 30, 2014 at 9:53 am
JJ,
Buying a B- credit to get a double digit yield takes balls.
Buying a B- credit to get less than 7% yield to maturity is just stepping on your own balls.
If everything goes right, I might get a 2% to 3% after-tax, inflation-adjusted annualized return.
If things go as they often do for B- credits, I get a big loss.
I’d rather take the sure negative real return of 1.5% to cash, which at least gives me the option to buy something better later.
[5] They forgot to mention that her husband’s business was putting on the seminar, “How to get Rich by Buying a House in Grand Rapids, Michigan”
[W]hen Jennifer Berry, 41, purchased a home in Grand Rapids, Mich. with her husband in 2001, they had a simple plan: live there for 10 years or so, cash in on the equity and upgrade. Thanks to the financial crisis, things didn’t quite go as planned. Her husband’s business failed, they separated and she was forced to sell the home at a loss.
Look at the bright side, she got to keep the dog.
Great article showing how the crooks of wall st are basically robbing the pensions. Keep blaming the govt workers and teachers.
“Taibbi: Well, there are primarily two reasons why most states’ pension funds are depleted. One huge reason is that a lot of states and municipalities have not been making their required contributions into the funds every year. They’re mandated by law to throw in a little bit of money. Most of the funds are actually funded by the workers themselves — they make a small percentage contribution of their incomes into the funds – but there’s also a taxpayer contribution, and the states were supposed to have put that money in for years and years and years. What they’ve been doing, in many cases, is just not doing that. Politicians have been taking that money and spending it on other stuff — building things, stadiums, swimming pools, new athletic complexes, giving out tax breaks to influential donors, things like that. So that’s one problem.
The other huge problem is that a lot of pension funds were targeted as institutional investors by financial companies and banks in the pre-crash years and they bought mortgage-backed securities, which subsequently blew up. So they were buying a fraudulent product, which ended up depleting the fund.
Holland: And this is one of the key issues: the rating agencies were in cahoots with Wall Street, and they would bless these piles of toxic securities as triple-A rated securities. A lot of pension funds are required to invest only in highly rated investments. So they were basically cooking the books so that pensions could buy into this junk.
It blew up in their face, and now we have this so-called pension crisis, and it seems that there’s a push to run in there and loot it. And it strikes me, reading your piece, that there’s kind of a confluence of ideology and greed going on here. For some time, the right has been making public sector workers into the new welfare queens, living large off the public teat — never mind that, according to economist Dean Baker, the average public employee’s pension was just $22,000 dollars in 2007, and a lot of them aren’t even eligible for Social Security.
So there’s that ideological component, and then there’s a kind of shock doctrine going on, where we have this contrived crisis and then these sharks just move right in to feed.
How extensive is this campaign to convince the public that bloated public employee pensions are to blame for the budget crunch that these states and localities are dealing with?”
http://billmoyers.com/2013/09/30/matt-taibbi-on-wall-streets-campaign-to-loot-public-pensions/
“Taibbi: Well, there are organized campaigns going on in almost every state in the country. There are foundations like the Arnold Foundation, which is run by a former Enron commodities trader and billionaire named John Arnold. He’s sort of the Koch brothers figure in this tableau. The Pew Charitable Trusts have a partnership with the Arnold Foundation. The Manhattan Institute — which is kind of a finance sector think tank — they’ve done a lot of work on this stuff. Students First New York is another group that has been campaigning against defined benefit plans.
Almost every state you go to, there’s some kind of organized campaign that essentially says, states are broke, the reason is that these benefits are unsustainably high, and the solution is a combination of cuts going forward and then a move toward sort of a 401(k)-style plan that includes — and this is really the important part — that includes investing a large parcel of this public money in “alternative investments,” which ends up putting the money right back into the hands of Wall Street.”
“Holland: And it’s not just the 2 percent fees to get in. They also take a big chunk on the way out, in terms of profits. It was when I was writing about Bain during the last election that I learned about these ‘2 and 20’ arrangements.
These funds are charging exorbitant fees while we’re pushing these deep cuts on public sector workers who put their entire careers into serving their communities and end up with relatively modest pensions. I mean, you hear anecdotally of some sheriff with a $300,000 dollar pension, but again, the average is $22,000 dollars.
Matt, why do they keep it secret? Why can’t these workers find out where their money is invested?
Taibbi: Well, I think there are two reasons. Number one, if they knew what the fees were, I think people would be out in the streets, because it’s even worse than what you say. You know, the standard formula is two and 20 – you get two percent just for showing up, so if you put $100 million into a hedge fund, [the fund] gets $2 million dollars right away, before it even performs. Then it gets 20 percent of all the profits.
Then there’s a thing called “fund expenses,” which is typically half of a percent and can cover just about anything, travel expenses for the people running the fund, dinners, whatever. Then there are trading costs, which typically add up to another percent or more, so every time the hedge fund trades it pulls those fees out — it doesn’t actually show up as a line item. It just shows up as less money in the fund later on.
And then the final thing is, if you want to withdraw money, if you want to redeem your funds, you have to pay a fee for that.
So there are five different fees that you’re paying for that kind of alternative investment, and that ends up to being three, four, even five percent that you’re going to pay, which, again, might be 500 times what you’d pay for a typical S&P index fund.
And then the other question is what are they invested in? In a lot of cases you don’t know, but it could be something horrible. I mean we’ve had ridiculous examples. We’ve had workers compensation founds that have turned out to be invested in Beanie Babies and rare coins. We’ve had people who were invested in payday lenders. There are other funds that are invested in factories overseas, so you’re a worker here at home, you’re a union worker, but you’re funding the construction of a Chinese factory. You know, all kinds of horrible stuff, and I think union workers have a right to know what’s being done with their money.”
and this is really the important part — that includes investing a large parcel of this public money in “alternative investments
What a dumb comment.
“In the national debate over what to do about public pension shortfalls, here’s something you may not know: The texts of the agreements signed between those pension funds and financial firms are almost always secret. Yes, that’s right. Although they are public pensions that taxpayers contribute to and that public officials oversee, the exact terms of the financial deals being engineered in the public’s name and with public money are typically not available to you, the taxpayer.
To understand why that should be cause for concern, ponder some possibilities as they relate to pension deals with hedge funds, private equity partnerships and other so-called “alternative investments.” For example, it is possible that the secret terms of such agreements could allow other private individuals in the same investments to negotiate preferential terms for themselves, meaning public employees’ pension money enriches those private investors. It is also possible that the secret terms of the agreements create the heads-Wall-Street-wins, tails-pensions-lose effect — the one whereby retirees’ money is subjected to huge risks, yet financial firms’ profits are guaranteed regardless of returns.”
http://billmoyers.com/2014/04/28/wall-street%E2%80%99s-pension-gamble/
@eisingerj: Why only 1 top banker is in prison for the Finl Crisis. It’s worse than you think. My @ProPublica/@NYTmag piece: http://t.co/Ny6QNmD7X3
“Over the past year, I’ve interviewed Wall Street traders, bank executives, defense lawyers and dozens of current and former prosecutors to understand why the largest man-made economic catastrophe since the Depression resulted in the jailing of a single investment banker — one who happened to be several rungs from the corporate suite at a second-tier financial institution. Many assume that the federal authorities simply lacked the guts to go after powerful Wall Street bankers, but that obscures a far more complicated dynamic. During the past decade, the Justice Department suffered a series of corporate prosecutorial fiascos, which led to critical changes in how it approached white-collar crime. The department began to focus on reaching settlements rather than seeking prison sentences, which over time unintentionally deprived its ranks of the experience needed to win trials against the most formidable law firms. By the time Serageldin committed his crime, Justice Department leadership, as well as prosecutors in integral United States attorney’s offices, were de-emphasizing complicated financial cases — even neglecting clues that suggested that Lehman executives knew more than they were letting on about their bank’s liquidity problem. In the mid-’90s, white-collar prosecutions represented an average of 17.6 percent of all federal cases. In the three years ending in 2012, the share was 9.4 percent. “
If I have to ignore the laws that allow me to pay less taxes (credits, deductions, et al) or else you’ll say I’m dodging … can I ignore the law that says I have to pay any taxes in the first place?
6.anon (the good one) says:
April 30, 2014 at 8:23 am
he’s becoming more and more like chifi. the worst thing was dodging taxes being the 1st thing out of law school
33 – What do you expect a pension to invest in that isn’t somehow connected to the global financial markets (aka Wall Street)? Beanie Babies?
Why do we need econ policy makers?
13.Michael says:
April 30, 2014 at 9:18 am
“The term bears negative connotations, but slow economic growth is not always the fault of economic policymakers
37 Joyce,
Why do we need police?
People with pensions are the biggest crooks.
29.Michael says:
April 30, 2014 at 10:49 am
Great article showing how the crooks of wall st are basically robbing the pensions. Keep blaming the govt workers and teachers.
Grim tulips? maybe housing?
Pension plans should invest in privatized roads. Win win.
JJ: the preferreds and sub-notes get wiped out in a default….you don’t get nicked….you get nada…..
JJ says:
April 30, 2014 at 10:12 am
Just throwing out how bad it is to get yield now. I follow a perverse form of backwardation. Meaning I take the approximate payout I would get in liquidation if it goes BK, add in all interest received to date plus my purchase price to figure out possible loss. For example I own this junk bond, AFFINION GROUP INC SR SB NT 11.50000% 10/15/2015 which is super risky. But I bought it at Par January 2010 and and after four years of interest already got back 46% of investment just in interest. So I will ride it to maturity. However, buying that bond today at par is very risk. Only two interest payments left and if it goes BK by 10-15-2015 that is a nightmare.
24.Ragnar says:
April 30, 2014 at 9:53 am
JJ,
Buying a B- credit to get a double digit yield takes balls.
Buying a B- credit to get less than 7% yield to maturity is just stepping on your own balls.
If everything goes right, I might get a 2% to 3% after-tax, inflation-adjusted annualized return.
If things go as they often do for B- credits, I get a big loss.
I’d rather take the sure negative real return of 1.5% to cash, which at least gives me the option to buy something better later.
It’s a job, not public service
31.Michael says:
April 30, 2014 at 10:54 am
public sector workers who put their entire careers into serving their communities
http://www.njspotlight.com/stories/14/04/28/analysis-new-jersey-faces-four-year-fiscal-crisis/
First section deals with next 4 years…rest deals with afterwards…
…While future governors will continue to pay in billions every year to cover what is still expected to be a $54 billion unfunded liability at the end of FY18, the annual increase in pension payments — which is expected to jump by $2.45 billion over Christie’s last three years to a total of $4.8 billion that year — is projected to slow dramatically starting in FY19. In fact, the state’s pension payments could actually drop in future years as the unfunded liability is slowly paid down.
That does not help Christie. The governor keeps complaining that rising pension, health benefits, and debt service increases are eating up 94 percent of this year’s revenue increase, but does not intend to propose any changes until he puts together his FY16 budget next February, Christie spokesman Kevin Roberts told Star-Ledger columnist Tom Moran.
Christie’s call for Democrats to push public employees to pay more toward their pension and health benefits is not going to resonate with Sweeney either.
Sweeney paid a political price for jamming through legislation that increased pension and health benefit payments for all employees of state, county, and municipal government and school districts, froze cost-of-living increases for public employee retirees, and suspended collective bargaining on healthcare issues by public employees for four years.
Angered by what they viewed as Sweeney’s treason to the union movement, the public employee unions banded together to block the state AFL-CIO from endorsing Sweeney, Sen. Donald Norcross (D-Camden), then the head of the South Jersey Central Labor Council, and other Democrats who voted for the pension and health benefits bill for reelection in 2011.
Sweeney, who will undoubtedly face a contested primary fight for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination in 2017, has been trying to rebuild alliances with the public employee unions, starting with his insistence that Christie stick to the pension funding agreement he made in 2011 and not ask public employees to pay more — a position in which he has the strong support of Assembly Speaker Vincent Prieto (D-Hudson) and top Assembly Democrats.
Sweeney also knows that the increasing cost of retiree healthcare costs is also going to slow after FY21, the third year of the new governor’s administration, as a direct result of provisions in his pension and health benefits bill that will require employees who had less than 20 years of service as of June 28, 2011, to pay some of the cost of their medical coverage after retirement.
Aon Hewitt, the state’s benefits consulting firm, has calculated that the healthcare bills for public employees who retire after 25 years with full medical coverage will increase by an average of 8.5 percent through FY21 both for those whose full medical bills are paid by the state prior to age 65 and those who only rely on the state for Medicare copayments, according to an April 9 bond refinancing document issued by the Educational Facilities Authority….
public sector workers who put their entire careers into serving their communities
Did you get that from the union talking points memo?
We don’t, but let’s talk about that topic seperately. I can’t tell from your quip if you do or don’t think we need econ policy makers…?
38.Phoenix says:
April 30, 2014 at 11:23 am
37 Joyce,
Why do we need police?
The article interviewing Matt Taibbi is from Rolling Stone. I did not get any of this information from unions.
grim says:
April 30, 2014 at 11:59 am
public sector workers who put their entire careers into serving their communities
Did you get that from the union talking points memo?
[47] Michael,
Oh, now there’s a credible and unbiased source. ( hey, I did that with a straight face).
I have yet to meet a “dedicated” public servant who didn’t cut corners, loaf, or deride the population they served. And I come from a family full of them.
FUKC YOU all who voted against it
@NewsBreaker: BREAKING: Senate votes down motion to move to debate of bill increasing federal minimum wage 54-42. Needed 60 – @JaredHalpern
Just back from Delaware where they opened a new Cabela’s. They had a pre-opening for cardholders. I did some shopping. Suffice it to say, anon would be VERY pissed off at me.
[49] anon,
Too bad that you won’t be getting that raise now.
“At a time when the middle class is disappearing and millions of working Americans are still living in poverty, it is absolutely imperative that we raise the minimum wage.
“The truth is that the national minimum wage of $7.25 an hour is a starvation wage. While Vermont and other states have raised the minimum wage higher than the national level, it is important that Congress pass a national minimum wage of at least $10.10 an hour. I am very disappointed, but not surprised, that only one Republican agreed to even consider the legislation.”
@SenSanders: Sanders Statement on Senate Vote on Minimum Wage: http://t.co/TQLw9G9c91 #minimumwage #FairShot
Did you read anything from those articles I posted? How are people with pensions crooks? I don’t get it. Did you read the stats saying that the avg pension was 22,000. Let me post that quote for you, from the article.
“These funds are charging exorbitant fees while we’re pushing these deep cuts on public sector workers who put their entire careers into serving their communities and end up with relatively modest pensions. I mean, you hear anecdotally of some sheriff with a $300,000 dollar pension, but again, the average is $22,000 dollars.
Matt, why do they keep it secret? Why can’t these workers find out where their money is invested?”
So you see JJ, you saw a couple of top politicians( yes, sherriffs are politicians) raping the system, and now you think every worker gets 100,000 dollar pensions. Read the avg. Yes, it’s 22,000 dollars. How is someone receiving 22,000 dollars a crook?
The articles I posted provide mounds of evidence about wall st taking advantage of pensions, and you guys turn a blind eye to it, and ignore it, and then come back and say the person with the pension is a crook? Man, you guys are blind. Next line will be that it’s too generous of a pension.
JJ says:
April 30, 2014 at 11:28 am
People with pensions are the biggest crooks.
I have yet to meet a citizen working on wall st that is “dedicated” to making this a better country. If that’s the way you describe a public worker, I think you have it mixed up with wall st. It def sounds like you are describing someone on wall st.
Btw, you are stereotyping. I know plenty of public servants who are good people. There are good and bad public workers. There are also good and bad private workers. Bottom line, there are good and bad people out there. Hence, why we need govt. You can’t trust some people to do the right thing.
“I have yet to meet a “dedicated” public servant who didn’t cut corners, loaf, or deride the population they served. And I come from a family full of them.”
So much for your wage inflation, michaeltard.
The only thing that will fix the gubmint is a bloody, ultraviolent revolution. Too bad the people who would need to be involved have been n@rcoticized into a sun-staring stupor.
[54] michael
“Btw, you are stereotyping.”
Wrong. I stated facts based on personal knowledge. I said nothing about people I don’t know. Where’s the blanket generalization needed for a stereotyping statement?
“I know plenty of public servants who are good people.”
That’s nice. I don’t know who you know. And it’s an irrelevant statement. Virtually everyone I know in public service is a good person. That doesn’t mean they aren’t lazy, jaded, and opportunistic.
Let’s see how good these public service leeches are once a pitchfork-wielding mob is moving in on them.
My first “job” was as a caddy at the local golf club. Scene right out of Caddyshack. We basically made about $4 per bag per round back then, which was $1 per hour. We were mostly 10-14 year olds, all boys. Rode your bike down to the club and if you were very ambitious, you double bagged and went out twice, meaning you could make about $20 in a day. True, it was probably $2 per hour all told but that was great money to kids like us in 1970. Great formative experience, and you learned a great game (Caddies could play on Mondays and there were no greens fees). Many of my peers went on to take up the game, play on HS and college teams, and play still.
Today, you would have to pay the kids min. wage, make sure they were old enough, and observe other regulations. And today, you don’t find caddies on courses, you find carts (which can be depreciated and bring in more $$ than caddies).
I cannot help but believe that the complete disappearance of caddies and the advent of aggressive labor enforcement and min. wage laws are related. And yes, $2 per hour was probably a starvation wage but we weren’t starving. Our moms still made us dinner when we got home.
Nom [50];
I suspect its a two-fer: One outrage that you were able to buy what you bought, and a second because you didn’t pay sales tax on the purchase!
Nom, I would advise you to direct your hate at politicians. Honestly, the avg govt worker is not the problem. They don’t even make a lot of money. You guys said 110,000 is nothing here in north jersey, and I don’t know any regular govt workers making that kind of money. Not even half of that.
Comrade Nom Deplume, Guardian of the Realm says:
April 30, 2014 at 1:13 pm
[54] michael
“Btw, you are stereotyping.”
Wrong. I stated facts based on personal knowledge. I said nothing about people I don’t know. Where’s the blanket generalization needed for a stereotyping statement?
“I know plenty of public servants who are good people.”
That’s nice. I don’t know who you know. And it’s an irrelevant statement. Virtually everyone I know in public service is a good person. That doesn’t mean they aren’t lazy, jaded, and opportunistic.
That pension article is so obviously a puff piece from the left that it’s not worth reading. It’s one big, steaming, heaping pile of dog poop. As is so often the case with extreme left or right rags and writers, the facts are not even remotely checked. Normally I don’t even bother skimming the kind of trash that Anon and Michael post, but to blame the pension issues on Wall Street is really stretching the truth to such asinine proportions that I had to peruse it.
I am not going to debate that ultraliberal Matt Taibbi’s points one by one, but I’ll point out one intentional blunder (lie) to show how pathetic this author really is and why one should read no further unless they want to be entertained by the absurdity of such a puff piece and how liberals who can’t think for themselves, eat this stuff up.
If you want to know every single transaction made by the NJ Division of Investment since the 7 NJ Pension programs were started, you can email them and ask for it or you can get it from this web page:
http://www.nj.gov/treasury/doinvest/monthly.shtml
Then you can actually track the performance of these “alternative investments” here:
Same link but replace monthly.shtml with directorsreports.shtml.
If you want to know the truth about NJ Pension shortfalls, I can explain it in a couple of sentences.
Our elected officials promised the world in benefits in exchange for the public union’s endorsements and voting block. It did not matter that what was promised could not be delivered regardless of whether the taxpayers paid their fair share. When these politicians made their promises, they knew they would be long gone before the sh1t hit the fan.
If these NJ public sector unions truly believed they would get what was promised, they might have said boo in 2011 when the COLA’s were eliminated and the workers contributions were increased.
Even they know the math does not work and what was promised could never be paid.
Where in the world can one invest $75,000 or so over 25 years and get between $2,000,000 and $4,000,000 out plus medical coverage for life for worker and spouse. I know where. Only in the demented mind of an ultra liberal.
Anon…the decision not to raise the minimum wage just goes to show you the truth about our government. They are not interested in helping you and me. Once you get that through your thick skull, you will be a lot better off.
This is all you need to see:
“The legislation was opposed by business groups including the National Council of Chain Restaurants and the International Franchise Association. The National Restaurant Association has hundreds of members at the Capitol this week lobbying lawmakers on several issues, including opposition to a higher minimum wage.”
So I looked at the scenery,
She read her magazine;
And the moon rose over an open field.
“Kathy, I’m lost”, I said,
Though I know she was sleeping.
“I’m empty and aching and
I don’t know why.”
Counting the cars
On the New Jersey Turnpike
The’ve all come
To look for America,
All come to look for America,
All come to look for America.
Re: minimum wage
Given that states can set their minimum wage at whatever level they’d like, why would anyone think that increasing the federal minimum wage is a good idea?
It was just an attempt by libtard high-cost states (where the cost of living has been driven up by high taxes, wasteful government spending on giveaways-for-votes, bloated public sector union pensions etc.) to eliminate free-market competition from lower-cost states.
If you want a higher minimum wage, push it forward at the state level. Then let the chips fall where they may.
“I cannot help but believe that the complete disappearance of caddies and the advent of aggressive labor enforcement and min. wage laws are related. And yes, $2 per hour was probably a starvation wage but we weren’t starving.And yes, $2 per hour was probably a starvation wage but we weren’t starving”
$2/hour was greater than minimum wage in 1970 and is about $12/hour now. Also, in many states caddies are exempt from minimum wage laws.
I don’t mind raising the minimum wage as long as it is funded by the public sector unions. Perhaps make them pay a copayment like the rest of us and this money can go into a fund which will make up the difference between what the current employer pays and what the new minimum wage level is. Over time, the public worker can slowly give back benefits such as free EZ Pass transponders, unlimited Metro Cards, free gas for their company cars that they are allowed to drive home from work to fund further increases to the minimum wage.
Hell, you could probably create a surplus in the NJ Transportation fund, by simply making public workers pay for their own tolls.
[65] pete
The $2 figure came only if you agreed to carry two bags. Most kids didn’t. And while caddies may be exempt in many states, they aren’t in all. In any event, it was likely a confluence of factors, the larger ones I mentioned. The point is that caddies were no longer cost effective.
A min. wage hike won’t kill off all min. wage jobs. But how many no longer become cost effective and why? When Roombas can clean offices, and McD’s drive thru is fully automated, no one will much care about the min. wage issue.
“When Roombas can clean offices, and McD’s drive thru is fully automated, no one will much care about the min. wage issue.”
Anyone for a smiley rollback of prices?
Clot [58];
Let’s see how good these public service leeches are once a pitchfork-wielding mob is moving in on them.
I think the cops (with several graphic exceptions) and the firemen (less so) will be able to hold their ground, but won’t be much use to anyone but their immediate tribe. The teachers and clerical back office types are way too doughy; they’re done for.
“The point is that caddies were no longer cost effective. A min. wage hike won’t kill off all min. wage jobs”
I dont disagree, it just seems as though in the case of caddies that the minimum wage didn’t’really factor in to the equation. The automation (golf carts) were not only cheaper but increased revenue (faster rounds, more potential volume). Caddies could work for free and the use of golf carts would still prevail.
[60] moose,
Not only that, but they did not have the advertised product in stock so I got upgraded product at the sale price. And I used Cabela’s Club points to help fund the purchases. I could turn around and resell for list right now and pocket around $350. And if Bloomie and Obama suddenly make a lot of headway on their goals, I can resell for a lot more.
Lots of people there for the second day of the invitation-only sale. The store opens officially tomorrow. The general public flocking to the counter in the back will find it a tad depleted.
No jobs allowed unless it can cover the mortgage for a median priced home in NJ.
Sorry young and low-skilled laborers, we don’t like your kind around here.
[70] Pete,
Actually, I think that min. wage played an indirect role in that other jobs now became more attractive. Caddying was hot, sweaty, dirty work. I really didn’t like it. And while there were few jobs for kids that age, the wage pressure sparked by things like a min. wage hike made other jobs attractive and there was a move-up phenomenon.
Sometimes you get strange results. Kids don’t want to deliver papers anymore when they can rake leaves once and make the same money as a month of paper delivery. So now adults in cars are delivering papers over much larger routes. Even if kids wanted to rake leaves, technology has lowered the cost for power tools so homeowners and small businesses can take on those tasks/business.
Things are very different now and we aren’t going back to what was.
I think Libturd understands NJ’s pension dynamics better than just about anyone besides the politicians who got away with stealing from NJ’s future.
Hoskins<Vigoda
@paulsaldana: Minimum wage in various rich countries as a % of the average wage. The U.S. isn’t quite the lowest, but we’re close http://t.co/SfQvmTxr9j
Remind me to never apply to flip burgers in Estonia.
Lib, remember when you posted the calculations on the pension a month or two ago to prove how the #s don’t work? You actually proved my point with your calculation. You came up with a # and said, see it pays out this much, yet they only put in this much, it’s not sustainable. Remember that I pointed out that your #s didn’t include any contribution from the state. You based the entire formula only on what the worker put in. This is your fatal flaw with your thinking.
I can’t remember your exact #s from that day, but I do recall that with the state contribution, the #s would then make sense.
Liberal or conservative, who cares who the writer is. What are you supposed to only read sources you agree with? I like to read both sides of the story, and then make a judgment based on that. So I don’t think it matters if it’s a conservative piece or liberal piece, as long as it takes a position and supports it, I’m fine with it. I’m just hear to learn and learn some more. I will not have the same position ten years from now, because with learning, philosophies and beliefs change. Reading the same source does nothing but limit your knowledge on a subject. It’s the reason I like coming on this blog so much, I am constantly challenging my beliefs by coming on this blog and debating different pts of view. It’s the only way you can grow as an individual.
I respect everyone on this board. You could be sitting on the couch, drinking a beer, but instead you take time out of your busy day, to challenge and debate the issues facing our society. I respect that.
TBTF 4Ever PLAYA.
42.chicagofinance says:
April 30, 2014 at 11:44 am
JJ: the preferreds and sub-notes get wiped out in a default….you don’t get nicked….you get nada…..
Ahh, looks like nom has a romanticized outlook of his childhood. When I was little, I used to carry golf bags for 2 dollars an hour. Sounds like slave labor today, but back then that was more than the minimum wage….lmao
Pete says:
April 30, 2014 at 2:01 pm
“I cannot help but believe that the complete disappearance of caddies and the advent of aggressive labor enforcement and min. wage laws are related. And yes, $2 per hour was probably a starvation wage but we weren’t starving.And yes, $2 per hour was probably a starvation wage but we weren’t starving”
$2/hour was greater than minimum wage in 1970 and is about $12/hour now. Also, in many states caddies are exempt from minimum wage laws.
Brainwashed fool
78.Michael says:
April 30, 2014 at 2:31 pm
I like to read both sides of the story
plus he got the chance to see grown men naked in the lockers
Michael says:
April 30, 2014 at 2:40 pm
Ahh, looks like nom has a romanticized outlook of his childhood. When I was little, I used to carry golf bags for 2 dollars an hour. Sounds like slave labor today, but back then that was more than the minimum wage….lmao
Pete says:
April 30, 2014 at 2:01 pm
“I cannot help but believe that the complete disappearance of caddies and the advent of aggressive labor enforcement and min. wage laws are related. And yes, $2 per hour was probably a starvation wage but we weren’t starving.And yes, $2 per hour was probably a starvation wage but we weren’t starving”
$2/hour was greater than minimum wage in 1970 and is about $12/hour now. Also, in many states caddies are exempt from minimum wage laws.
Chif here is some yield for you and insured by Ambac to boot.
Bond CUSIP 927676KV7
Description VIRGIN ISLANDS PUB FIN AUTH REV REV BDS05.00000% 10/01/2031GROSS RCPTS TAXES LNNT SER. 2003 A
$99.35
If he calls cleaning men’s balls and holding their shaft caddying so be it.
You are not going to complain about all the perks people get in the private industry from their companies? Do you see how you are one-sided? Private industry perks are ridiculous. You take a look at places like google? If govt workers got that, you guys would flip out.
Libturd in the City says:
April 30, 2014 at 2:06 pm
I don’t mind raising the minimum wage as long as it is funded by the public sector unions. Perhaps make them pay a copayment like the rest of us and this money can go into a fund which will make up the difference between what the current employer pays and what the new minimum wage level is. Over time, the public worker can slowly give back benefits such as free EZ Pass transponders, unlimited Metro Cards, free gas for their company cars that they are allowed to drive home from work to fund further increases to the minimum wage.
Hell, you could probably create a surplus in the NJ Transportation fund, by simply making public workers pay for their own tolls.
I’m a fool for taking the time to understand both sides of the story? If you are going to call me a brainwashed fool, please explain. How? and by who?
joyce says:
April 30, 2014 at 2:41 pm
Brainwashed fool
78.Michael says:
April 30, 2014 at 2:31 pm
I like to read both sides of the story
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sy_VzDlSies
[82] anon,
“plus he got the chance to see grown men naked in the lockers”
Actually no. In fact, I am not sure where the locker room was, or even if there was one.
Sorry to disappoint you. I know you were looking for some salacious tidbits. Shall I describe the showers at the Huntington Avenue YMCA in Boston for you sometime? Did nothing for me but you may like it.
(CNN) — Senate Republicans on Wednesday blocked a top legislative and political priority of Democrats, a bill to increase the federal minimum wage to $10.10 an hour.
…
“This is an uphill fight, but it isn’t over yet,” said Sen. Elizabeth Warren after the vote.
Sounds like someone is on the war path;-)
Michael [88];
Nice dodge. Even if Google’s perks were relevant (and they’re not, since no one is involuntarily paying for google’s perks at gunpoint), Google employs less than 50k people. The Census says there were 22.0 million total federal, state and local government employees in the U.S. in March 2012. The feds alone employ 4.3 million people. Google’s employees would have to be 440 time more expensive than a government employee before the scope of the dollars in question would be the same.
#62….there is a lawsuit pending about the nixing of the COLA.
[89] expat,
Ha, you mean Liewatha?
Okay, fun over. Salt mine beckons.
sounds like fauxcohontas needs a pow pow
Michael…We don’t all work at Google. Do you know what perks I get? None. Plus, I am a pretty high level mid-manager at what probably represents the average mid sized company at 5,000 or so employees. I also have to work most holidays that public workers have off. I also can’t get overtime, though I work a hell of a lot of it.
The difference between my 401k and the public sectors pension is that I am not guaranteed 8% per year. My company matches 100% of my first 3% and that’s it. It used to match 50% of the next 4% I contribute but that went away during the financial crisis as did 15% of my salary.
If the market tanks as I approach retirement, I am screwed. If the market tanks when Joe cop or Sally teacher retires, you and I will be forced to make up the shortage!
Based on my current and past contribution (which is much less than the average teacher, cop or fireman contributes), based on a 7% return, I’ll retire with 1.5 million in my 401K. Keep in mind, this is with contributing 15% of my salary during my first 5 years of employ here. My numbers are 270K in there now, working another 19 years until I’m 62.
So how big should the state match be Michael?
The math I did last time had the average worker taking out between 2 and 4 million, after contributing about 75K. I’ve already contributed about 100K. By the time I retire, I will have contributed probably around 250K.
So how much should we be paid to match? I would gladly match 100% of the first 5% they contribute. This is very fare. For some reason, you want the government to match close to 500% on their first 3%. Why? What makes a public worker so damn special.
Thanks Condo. It doesn’t matter. It’s not getting paid anyhow. Since there is no possible way to pay for it without the taxpaying populace pulling a Toyota.
Make employer or public contributions to retirement illegal, problem solved.
One of the companies my company took over before I joined them had a real nice pension plan. Unfortunately, the employer stopped making payments to the pension long before they got absorbed by us. A couple of the blue collar workers we absorbed back then still complain about it. In lieu of the pension, our employer made a one time payment to current and past workers, which it wasn’t even required to do. And the employees never even contributed a penny to it. Where was Michael and Anon when private pensions were being raided? That’s right, it wasn’t written about in Rolling Stone and Twitter had not yet existed.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rAT_BuJAI70
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FlcngdW2Ju4
86.Michael says:
April 30, 2014 at 2:51 pm
I’m a fool for taking the time to understand both sides of the story? If you are going to call me a brainwashed fool, please explain. How? and by who?
#95, did you read the article I posted….after 2021 the pension issue more or less resolves itself. Plus they can always undue the Whitman tax cut for 1999…..bottom line, trained as a pension/life actuary…you always wanted to pre-fund these accounts, it was anathema to use pay as you go, however when adequately pre-funded the tendency is to increase benefits in the public sector or have the excess funds raided via a merger/acquisition in the private sector….seems best plan may just put them on a pay as you go basis……like SocSec….AND, as it turns out that is what is probably going to happen…
DJIA closed at a record high today. which means since it is end of month when folks check their may 1st 401K balances tommorrow they will be very happy.
So will this kid get excommunicated from all the cool hipster parties at Princeton
http://theprincetontory.com/main/checking-my-privilege-character-as-the-basis-of-privilege/
Is that your fcuking license plate?
JJ says:
April 30, 2014 at 2:34 pm
TBTF 4Ever PLAYA.
I’m reminded of my “friend” in my freshman year dorm who chided me for moving off-campus to live “among the Jews” and how she complimented me for having a nice plush a%% for a white boy……heaven forbid I said anything so crass by the Farrakhan intelligentsia…..
Painhrtz – Disobey! says:
April 30, 2014 at 4:42 pm
So will this kid get excommunicated from all the cool hipster parties at Princeton
@blackrepublican: NJ Democrat Candidate Caught on Tape Screaming: “This Is Gonna Be A Fckuking Ni**er Town” (Audio). http://t.co/WKAAWrSPcD #blacktwitter #tcot
@blackrepublican: Newark Mayor Cory Booker supporting township council member “Marie Strumolo Burke” http://t.co/PTCnSf99HG http://t.co/0Ztp7wafbt
So, in anticipation of Farrakhan’s visit to Alabama, here are his top 10 craziest quotes:
10. “You are not now, nor have you ever been a citizen of America. You are a slave to white America.”
9. “America is in trouble, and I say God is about to wipe this nation from the face of the Earth. I’m not crazy, I’m not drunk, how long do you think a nation can do evil and not face the wrath of god?”
8. “Qadaffi’s a revolutionary, he’s my friend, he’s my brother. And I would never deny him because you don’t like him… I love him.”
7. “My god will wipe this country (America) from the face of the earth.”
6. “You see everybody always talk about Hitler exterminating six million Jews. That’s right. But don’t nobody ever ask what did they do to Hitler.”
5. White people are potential humans – they haven’t evolved yet.
4. On on the Jewish people: “You are wicked deceivers of the American people. You have sucked their blood.”
3. On Hezbollah: “They call them terrorists, I call them freedom fighters.”
2. “The Jews don’t like Farrakhan, so they call me Hitler. Well, that’s a good name. Hitler was a very great man.”
1. “The Mother Wheel is a heavily armed spaceship the size of a city, which will rain destruction upon white America but save those who embrace the Nation of Islam.”
I guess you don’t get me by now. I’m genuinely a good guy, who supports helping people. If I was old enough to partake in the fight against the private pensions being raided, you know damn well I would have taken up that fight. Im sick of people with money, using it as a form of power over other human beings. Raiding people’s pensions is the work of the devil, this is why I don’t have a high opinion of the decision makers on wall st. You are robbing someone’s retirement. You are sick. Enron says it all, those bastards robbed their own workers retirement. How do you expect me to trust wall st 1% types, when I’ve seen their destruction throughout u.s. history. Madoff was on the damn sec, these people are sick. Go back to the gilded age, when there was no regulation, and these robber Barron’s put innocent 5 year olds to work in factories making them pretty much just work and sleep. Is that much different than a nazi camp? Yes, the factory and mine owners gave them enough to stay alive, but it wasn’t much more than that. How do these things not bother you?
When people yell for an end to govt regulations, they really don’t realize what they are asking for. You are asking to go back to a time when 5 year olds were treated like nothing more than a piece of equipment to make money. You are asking to go back to a time where everything was polluted. Cities were a disaster. Why? Because without regulations, people can do whatever the hell they want to do. I have a problem with that because it affects my rights. Yes, I have a right to clean air, clean water, and clean land. Get rid of regulations and you take away my right to that.
“Libturd in the City says:
April 30, 2014 at 3:41 pm
One of the companies my company took over before I joined them had a real nice pension plan. Unfortunately, the employer stopped making payments to the pension long before they got absorbed by us. A couple of the blue collar workers we absorbed back then still complain about it. In lieu of the pension, our employer made a one time payment to current and past workers, which it wasn’t even required to do. And the employees never even contributed a penny to it. Where was Michael and Anon when private pensions were being raided? That’s right, it wasn’t written about in Rolling Stone and Twitter had not yet existed.”
Wow, I entered the phrase “check your privilege” into google. There’s a crazy world out there of white male haters. I learned there are all sorts of new politically correct characterization of genders. Apparently I’m “CIS”, while there are two varieties of “Trans”.
And I found this essay from a guy who seems to be the nega-JJ : http://www.patheos.com/blogs/templeofthefuture/2014/03/how-to-check-your-privilege-in-5-excruciating-steps/
I just wanted to say thanks for the share. Good article.
1987 Condo says:
April 30, 2014 at 4:11 pm
#95, did you read the article I posted….after 2021 the pension issue more or less resolves itself. Plus they can always undue the Whitman tax cut for 1999…..bottom line, trained as a pension/life actuary…you always wanted to pre-fund these accounts, it was anathema to use pay as you go, however when adequately pre-funded the tendency is to increase benefits in the public sector or have the excess funds raided via a merger/acquisition in the private sector….seems best plan may just put them on a pay as you go basis……like SocSec….AND, as it turns out that is what is probably going to happen…
your republican kid WILL NOT get into an Ivy
@USATODAY: Kwasi Enin, who was accepted to all eight Ivy League schools, has decided: He’s going to Yale. http://t.co/8yguM2yaUR http://t.co/sYjd41JPhq
La Liga > EPL
I would support government regulation if they could show some sign of accountability. Will never happen.
Anon – i’ll bite. Since when do the universities ask about political affiliation on the entrance applications? Think about history a bit before you answer since history is filled with as we all know too well with examples of exclusion.
Somebody please slip some rat poison into the bait being fed to the trolls.
The racism in La Liga is way more intense than the EPL. Toss a banana at a player in England, and you won’t make it out of the stands.
Juice Box, there’s no need for me to think about it because I know a lot about the subject. some of my friends sit in admissions committees of very selective schools, so i know the process very well. will give you some tips later, but in the meantime go and read this
A CRITIC AT LARGE
GETTING IN
The social logic of Ivy League admissions.
BY MALCOLM GLADWELL OCTOBER 10, 2005
Juice Box says:
April 30, 2014 at 7:43 pm
Anon – i’ll bite. Since when do the universities ask about political affiliation on the entrance applications? Think about history a bit before you answer since history is filled with as we all know too well with examples of exclusion.
Relegation teams in Liga would be top 10 in EPL, no doubt on that.
Ivy skools are where you go to learn how to destroy the world. Columbia welcomes Ahmadinejad, yet is openly anti-Semitic. The place should be daisy-cuttered. My dad went to Princeton, but he asked me several times before he died not to send my kids there. What a f-ed up state of affairs.
Holy sh1t
Pa. Supreme Court allows searches of vehicles without warrants, following federal rules
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Posted: April 30, 2014 – 11:50 am
Last Updated: April 30, 2014 – 11:52 am
http://m.therepublic.com/view/story/c9978003943e441791c5629e92354c7a/PA–Vehicle-Search-Rules
Anon (116)-
Are your friends in admissions at DeVry or U of Phoenix?
Street (119)-
Stop thinking that you have rights and shit. Our modern-day Waffen SS is ready to tune you up and knock some sense into you.
Tips? Please do tell?
Re: #19 – don’t do the crime bla bla bla, meanwhile check the latest Constitutional amendment the left has put forth, hint it does not take money out of politics.
juice (122)-
Can’t wait to see college admissions tips from a guy whose idea of intellectual activity is retweeting.
In your opinion, Liga the top league in the world?
Ascent of the Robots says:
April 30, 2014 at 8:31 pm
Relegation teams in Liga would be top 10 in EPL, no doubt on that.
Stu, this made me think of you. Perfect for Montklair
http://jawdrops.com/chicken-flavored-vegan-ham/
Why do we punished with a nothing such as DeBlasio?
The recording, The Sun reports, was taped Monday night and captures Ford whining about his wife and expressing his desires about mayoral contender Karen Stintz:
‘“I’d like to f—–g jam her (Stintz), but she doesn’t want … I can’t talk like this … I’m so sorry,” Ford says on the recording. “I forgot there’s a woman in the house.”’
‘According to one witness, Ford was seen buying shooters and trying to fight with patrons in the Royal York Rd. bar Monday.’
‘“He was really wasted,” said the witness. “And he was acting like a real ass.”’
Nom…
Those vege hams don’t taste that different from real pork roll. Chances are, they are both made from the same artificial things.
michael (125)-
Yes, by a lot. But only on the field. Most of the teams are broke, and Barca and Real Madrid have a debt load that will crush them in the end.
In terms of both quality of play and management that doesn’t create financial time bombs, the Bundesliga is tops, and no other league is close.
Guardiola didn’t go to Bayern to learn German. He went because he knows his paychecks will always clear.
Is everyone keeping dry? The lake in our back yard is back, but the tripled pumping capacity of my French drain seems to be keeping up with it.
It is the end of days.